EAGER: Characterization and Modeling for Architectural Thermal Energy Harvesting

Arizona State University, Scottsdale AZ

Investigators

Abstract

To reduce the ever-increasing power dissipation caused by high temperature in computing systems, current approaches seek to apply cooling mechanisms to remove heat aggressively, as well as devising management techniques to avoid thermal emergencies by slowing down heat generation. Complementary to existing techniques, this proposal attempts to address the heat management problem using a fundamentally different approach -- rather than removing the heat or slowing down heat generation, we transform this heat into reusable energy by using thermoelectric materials. A Thermal Energy Harvesting (TEHar) framework is proposed here that will allow heat energy generated by computing devices to be recovered, transformed, and harvested efficiently, to achieve better energy efficiency. TEHar is based on the interesting implication of thermal energy distribution of computing platforms: the temperature differences between the hottest and the coldest components can be more than tens of degrees, creating a steep spatial thermal gradient. We discover that, by leveraging the thermoelectric effects at the architectural level, the varying spatial thermal gradients created as a result of computations can be exploited to transform heat into reusable energy. Therefore, the heat generated by the circuitry of the computing devices is not wasted but is rather harvested for reuse. This research explores possibilities in thermal energy harvesting techniques at the architectural level. Overall, this proposal explores the potential for energy harvestability, particularly in the steep thermal gradients commonly observed in computing systems, while also investigating applications that can reuse this recovered energy. The TEHar solution proposed here is anticipated to not only reduce cooling expenses and ambient temperatures, but also increase energy utilization, device lifetime, and physical space utilization. The TEHar technology developed here can be applied to a broad range of computing devices, large or small. If the research is successful, it has the potential of having a significant economic benefit as well as a significant, positive impact on the environment. Furthermore, this energy harvesting research requires cross-disciplinary engagement in areas such as material engineering, VLSI architecture, system architecture, and mechanical engineering and will attract a diverse set of student researchers. Overall, the engineering and scientific contributions will also have important societal impacts, including the broadening of ASU's engineering curriculum, the engagement of graduate as well as undergraduate research activities, the potential of creating high-school or middle-school scientific projects, and the increased representation of target underrepresented minorities in science and engineering.